


Tea with the King

by Anibelli



Category: Labyrinth (1986)
Genre: 80's Jareth in Modern Times, A bit of goblin violence, Aesthetic cause my girl Loves That Shit TM, CUTE TM, F/M, For my girl Ghostee, Heavy flirting, I know the time gap doesn't match up it should be 1996 but its like 2018 just relax, I've only seen this movie once please forgive me and my inaccuracies, Implied Sexual Content, JK love her anyways, Jareth has no chill, Merry Christmas Tee!, Romance, Sarah Aged Up, Sarah is much cooler when she's punching things, Strawberries & Roses, love you, tea time
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-28
Updated: 2018-12-28
Packaged: 2019-09-29 07:07:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,556
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17198876
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anibelli/pseuds/Anibelli
Summary: Jareth accidentally sends all his personal letters written to Sarah to her apartment. She invites him to stay for some tea.





	Tea with the King

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Ghostee](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ghostee/gifts).



_ Sarah, _

_ I am writing to you again… I know you will never receive these letters, but I must get these thoughts off my mind. I cannot focus, and you are the reason why. Your bravery plagues my thoughts, sending me into a whirlwind of confusion that transports me to a place I cannot escape. I am lost, you have made me lost, yet you are also my guide through the deep and treacherous deserts of my mind, leading me to an oasis of life and love while my duties watch and scoff and snarl at my recklessness. My recklessness for following you to the oasis, where you, my precious, end my suffering and cut my chains of enslavement to such a cruel place. Oh, how I wish it were so, that you had this power and could do as my heart desires. I wish to be above the world again. I wish to be free. _

_ Love, Your King _

* * *

_ Sarah, _

_ It is unfortunate that my brain entangles you in its web. I wish you had never asked for me to take your brother. I never wished for such a brave, courageous soul to be tied to this Hell forever. I know the goblins plague you still. They dance in your dreams, hide in your blind spots, ravage the calm, controlled aspects of your life and turn it into something that should not be exposed to the above world. I do everything I can to stop them, but there are many goblins, and my abilities have limits. There is only so much I can protect you against, though I know you would tell me that you don’t need protecting. As much as I believe you, there is a part of me that wishes I could allow you to be alone as you want. But, for the life of me, I cannot leave you alone in such a world. I cannot leave you plagued with no chance of escape. I must help. I cannot leave you alone again. _

_ Love, Your King _

* * *

_ Sarah, _

_ I’ve been informed you have found a mate. I would congratulate you, if the thought didn’t disgust me so. How dare he hold you the way I never could, caress your face and kiss the lips I will never be granted access to. How cruel it is for me to watch you love a man who is not me, while I have loved you since the day you refused me. How pathetic you would find me; falling for a woman who says no, falling for a woman who loves another, falling for a woman much stronger than he, falling for a woman who is more than a woman, but a clever, courageous warrior who will fight for the ones she loves. And love this man this woman does. But not the man she should. _

_ Or maybe it is I who is wrong. Maybe I am the one who does not understand. For you have not seen my face, fought my words, felt my hands, touched my heart, since the day you regained control. Maybe it is I who is mistaken. For you do not love me, so maybe I should not love you. _

_ Yet, I still find that I do. _

_ Love, Your King. _

* * *

_ Sarah, _

_ Maybe it is rash of me to find this day so joyous. It is the anniversary of you declaring your love over with the man who could not contain you and your powerful soul. He tried, bless this poor man’s heart, to do so, but he did not understand that a soul like yours should not be contained, but left free to the wind and for the world to see. A soul like yours can be contained by no one, and trust my word when I say I would never try.  _

_ Love, Your King _

* * *

_ Sarah, _

_ I wish we could meet once again. Oh, if only my wishes had the power yours do. I would see you every day, and I would tell you everything on my mind, and you would listen, you kind soul oh you would listen and give advice no one else could give. You would help me escape, like the knights rescuing the princess from the dragon and her prison in the human stories, yet the roles are reversed, and the warrior would rescue the king. The King’s dragon, my precious, is a timeless curse that can be broken through a sacrifice of love and life, passing the curse to another. It would be a treacherous journey, precious, one you would not soon forget. I know you are strong enough to defeat the dragon, rescue the princess. But I cannot bare the thought about what would happen if you wandered into something more deadly than you can handle. But you would make it, precious. I believe you could save the King from the dragon. A radiant light shines from your soul. Sarah, if I could extend your life forever I would do it, just so the world can bask in your wonder for longer. And my intentions may be selfish, for I would wish to bask in your wonder too. _

_ Love, Your King _

* * *

_ Sarah, _

_ When your heart breaks, mine breaks along with it. I feel your anguish, suffering, despair. Loss is a great tragedy we must all overcome, but it does not need to be conquered alone. I wish I could tell you I am here for you, wish you could see these words and know I am thinking of you every day, every night, in every moment of my miserable existence in this Hell: you are my salvation, and I will protect you in every way I can, hold you in every way I can. I will love you in every way I can. _

_ Always with you, _

_ Love, Your King. _

* * *

_ Sarah, _

_ My heart—  _

But he could not write.

Jareth sighed, putting down his quill, standing and walking to the fireplace near his bed and stopping before it. He could not write today. He had too many duties to attend to in his Labyrinth.

_No,_ he thought, **_The_** _Labyrinth. Do not take ownership of something so vile. Do not get lost in the dark._

He felt the heat tickle his face from the fire, and closed his eyes, imagining the small flecks of heat caressing his face to be Sarah’s hands. Her small frame pressing closer, her hot breath sweeping over his throat and flushing his skin. Her nose, nuzzling into the space where his neck meets his shoulder, sighing against his skin. Her dark locks brushing against his chin, slipping past the collar of his shirt and slipping down his chest. Her hands slipping down his chest, reaching into his—

He cleared his throat, shaking his head. No time to get distracted. He had duties to attend to, and writing to Sarah, thinking of Sarah, was not one of them. He snatched the letters from the side table, and one by one, tossed them into the flames.

“Sarah,” he murmured, watching the papers catch aflame and send sparks into the air. He turned away, the thoughts of her dark hair and light eyes lingering in his mind. He took three steps away, before freezing and turning around, rushing back to the fire. He plunged his hands into the flames, searching, grasping, reaching for the letters he had just tossed away.

They were gone.

He stepped back in shock, wondering how he forgot. How the thought skipped through his mind, never stopping and sinking in. He wondered how he allowed himself to sacrifice those letters to Sarah by burning them and saying her name.

Jareth had opened a can of worms he would not soon escape from.

* * *

Sarah Williams was a single young woman, with no roommates that she knew of, and knew no one who would try to communicate with her besides over text or in person. So it’s understandable that she was confused when she walked into her home and found a pile of letters sitting in front of her fireplace, which was still aflame.

First of all, her fireplace was deep inside her home. Whoever placed the letters there had made it inside her apartment.

Second, her fireplace was electric, so one could say her confusion only grew when she learned the flames on the false logs were real. 

Third,  _ who writes letters anymore? _   


After putting out the fire safely, Sarah contacted her landlord, but she said no one had reported any suspicious activity, and when Sarah checked her doors and windows, she could find no signs of a forced entry. She asked her neighbors, who said they neither saw nor heard anyone come to her door. She checked the fire escape, but there were no signs of any recent activity based on the untouched layer of dust still on the floor, and her windows were locked. 

She glanced back at the letters. Yep, still there. She wasn’t hallucinating them, they were tangible. She glanced them over. Her first name, written in a beautiful cursive scrawled on the front. A heart shaped wax seal closed the letters. There were six, each addressed to her in the same perfect penmanship.    


She turned around one more time, looking for anything suspicious in the apartment. Nothing.

She opened the first letter.

* * *

Jareth stormed into the large hall where his subjects were eating.

“Toil! Frakt! Sraas and Ragz!” He called, heading to the head table. Four goblins hobbled over instantly, bowing in the presence of their king.

“Yes, my King?” Toil did not dare raise her head before the King gave permission.

“Go to the surface immediately. Find Sarah Williams. She has six letters. Bring them to me before she can read them,” Jareth demanded, taking a forceful swig of wine. The goblins bowed deeper, noses almost scraping the ground. 

“Of course, my King.”

“Go now.”   


They leapt into the air, dissipating immediately. Jareth took another swig of wine, swishing it around in his mouth before slamming the goblet onto the table and leaping into the air as well, transforming into a barn owl and entering the human world. 

He landed softly on Sarah Williams’ fire escape railing, disturbing the large layers of dust that had lay dormant until then. He peered into her window, growling quietly when he saw her slide her finger along the seam of the letter, slipping it under the wax seal and popping it open lightly. She unfolded the letter— 

— and screamed when Frakt landed on her head out of nowhere. 

One large change in Sarah’s behavior, Jareth noted, was that she had become a lot braver in a physical fight. Like the moment he watched her grab Frakt by the ear and frisbee toss him across her apartment, a snarl on her soft pink lips.

“Damn goblins!” She yelled, stomping over to her purse that she had tossed onto her loveseat, reaching inside and pulling out a small handheld device. “The hell do you want now?”

Sraas appeared next, on her right, and Sarah, who was still fumbling with the device, kicked her leg up and launched Sraas straight into the ceiling with a loud _ THUMP!  _

Sarah managed to uncap her device, and when Sraas stood back up, she aimed the nozzle straight at his face, and sprayed a thick liquid into his eyes.

Jareth had never heard Sraas scream so loud in his life. He felt his eyes sting from outside the open window, and coughed a bit, clearing his lungs. 

Ragz took that as his cue, leaping through the air toward the letters. Sarah turned just in time to see his boney fingers scratch at the papers before she grabbed the nearest object— a lamp— and launched it straight at him. 

Jareth winced as Ragz flew out of view and a loud crash sounded throughout the apartment. He watched Frakt come back into view, making another attempt to attack Sarah, and Jareth felt his blood boil. He flicked his wing, and Frakt flew back out of view. Sarah froze and tilted her head in confusion, only stopping when Toil dropped out of nowhere and gathered the letters.    


“Oh, no you don’t!” Sarah yelped, launching her purse forward and spraying the liquid from the device again. Toil yelped, dodging the purse and coughing the peppery scent from her lungs, barely holding onto the letters as she scampered away. 

Sarah lunged forward, reaching her foot forward and kicking Toil’s hand away, knocking the letters out of her hand. Sarah grabbed Toil and, while ignoring Toil’s writhing, threw her out the open window.

Her eyes followed Toil’s body as it fell and dissipated as she teleported back to the Labyrinth. Sarah’s eyes snapped back up to Jareth the owl.

“You!” She snarled, getting ready to climb out the window. She blinked, and he was gone, a singular owl feather floating down to the floor of the fire escape. She heard a throat clear behind her, and whirled around, finding Goblin King Jareth in all his glittery, deep v-neck glory, holding all six letters between his fingers. She watched as he smoothly flipped one out of his fingers, the one she had tried to open, and slid his finger smoothly across the edge, sealing the letter once again.

Jareth hadn’t seen Sarah in person in ten years. So the time he spent looking her over was understandable, he swears. 

Her hair was pulled back gracefully, curled and soft, a little messy from when Frakt was attacking her from above. She had gotten much better at putting on makeup, her lines even and blending soft. Her lips were plump and perfect. Her body had filled out, her curves full and waist slim, accentuated by her flowery dress and white cardigan. Her skin was clearer now, smooth and milky and just a bit pink in the cheeks. Her fingernails were painted a light pink, an odd human custom he suspected, and her ears had small pink roses placed on the lobes. At a closer glance— one that made her eyebrows furrow as he leaned closer— he realized they weren’t real roses but small false ones, pierced through the fleshy lobe of her ear. He let out a hot breath, which curled down her neck and made her shiver. He retracted.

Her eyes hadn’t changed at all, and for that he was grateful.

She cleared her throat. “W-what do you want, Jareth?”   


“Just something that belongs to me,” he said simply, letting his eyes glance over her figure once more. She clenched her fists.

“I don’t belong to you, Jareth. I don’t belong to anyone.”   


“Good to know,” he nodded, looking over the letters. “But I was talking about these.”   


Sarah crossed her arms, her face and chest flushing red. Jareth wished to know just how far down that flush went. “Why were they in my house then?”   


“They escaped my grasp, and I came to regain them. To be fair, I am only here because of a sneaking suspicion I had that my plan wouldn’t go quite as well as I suspected,” Jareth glanced around, seeing the splatters of liquid pain and goblin blood across her walls. “And I suspected correctly.”

“Well, why do they have my name on them?”

Jareth opened his mouth but didn’t say anything. He blinked, and cleared his throat. “A different Sarah, not meant for you.”

She frowned, “Another Sarah? How many children did you abduct recently?”   


“...A lot,” Jareth lied, and turned away. 

Sarah rolled her eyes, “That’s not surprising. You’ve probably got a whole slew of girls who fell for your looks and charm, huh?”   


Jareth was silent. Yes, there were many young women once. And they were weak. But only one ever caught his eye. She was strong, oh so strong.

“I apologize for the intrusion. I will be leaving now.” Jareth went to teleport away, but Sarah raised her hand. 

“Stop…” she frowned deeper, and sighed. “Oh, I’m so going to regret this… Would you like to stay and have some tea?”

* * *

Jareth had taken a glance around her house while she made tea. She knew this because she heard his zipping around the apartment, choosing to teleport instead of walking. Several times, she felt him appear directly behind her, so close,  _ too _ close, but when she turned, he was always gone.   


After the fourth time, she slammed her hands onto the counter, startling Jareth enough that when she turned around he was still there.

“Do you need something?” she huffed.

A large grin spread across his face. “Just checking to see how the tea is coming along…” He leaned in close, nose almost touching hers, before moving beside her face, his lean shoulder coming her her chin as his breath flowed down her back and underneath her dress. He inhaled the fragrant scent of the tea, a mix of strawberries and roses.

He leaned back, but his touch lingered on her waist, hands lightly grazing the top of her hips. His mismatched eyes gazed down, lingering on her frame again, and she felt the heat fill her cheeks. How could he shamelessly look at her in such a way? She had never gotten the bravery to look at a man like that, and she doubted she ever would. 

He hummed a slight tune, something ancient and peculiar, pulling away completely and leaving Sarah breathless and very confused. 

Unknowing of how to respond, she turned back to the tea.

“Sarah, you’ve always been so fun to play around with,” Jareth commented, voice in her ear but physically rooms away. “You’re absolutely precious when you blush. And your skin is so soft. You always look absolutely…  Hmm, what’s the word?... Ah, yes,” he purred in her ear, “Delectable.”   


She squeaked, tucking her chin and flushing a deeper red as his chuckled fled to a seperate room. She stirred the water furiously, trying to drown out her embarrassment. 

She would’ve found his behavior odd if she didn’t know he wasn’t human. But after years of being tormented by his goblins and haunted by his beautiful features, she felt they needed to talk.

Hence the tea.

She knew this was an awful idea. She knew he could attempt to kill her at any moment. She knew he could attempt to kiss her at any moment.

Fortunately, she also had a feeling that he knew she could attempt to kick him at any moment, even if the action was futile. But part of her wondered if she would try.

She still feared him. 

_ Of course you fear him, _ her mind said, _ he’s the goblin king! The one that took your brother and put you through some mind bending maze! The one that visits you in your dreams still, messing with your head and flirting really heavily for some reason! Only an idiot wouldn’t fear someone who can bend reality itself. _

“You still fear me, Sarah?” Jareth’s voice came from behind her again. She whirled, accidentally throwing the spoon to the ground with a clatter. But he was many feet away, across her kitchen, arms crossed as he leaned against her counter languidly. 

“You read my thoughts?” she gasped.

He smirked, snapping his fingers and summoning the spoon to his hands. She watched as he twirled it across his fingers, flipping it through the air and landing on his other pointer finger, perfectly balanced, before twirling it again on his other hand.

“I cannot read thoughts, Sarah, though women seem to wish men could. No, you are just very easy to read. Quite sad, really. Makes you a terrible liar.”   


She huffed, crossing her arms. “Liars aren’t appreciated in the above world, Jareth. And I don’t fear you.”   


“Well, I certainly hope you don’t. You have no reason to fear me, Sarah. I will not harm you as my goblins did. I am very civil.”   


“Sure you are. Can I have the spoon back?”

“Why do you need it?” Jareth asked, eyes twinkling with an intent Sarah could not quite recognize. 

“To finish the tea, unless you would prefer to leave right now and not have tea,” she deadpanned. Jareth chuckled.

“What would you give for it?” Jareth tilted his head.

Sarah knew what he was trying to do. She rolled her eyes, taking a step forward. Jareth didn’t move, still sporting that devilish grin that made her heart skip a beat. She took another step forward, then another, then another, until she was almost atop him, chest hovering before chest. Two could play his game. Though she’d probably regret it in about three seconds.

She pushed up on her tiptoes, and felt her chest press against his and slide up and she leveled herself almost to his eyes. The smirk slid away, leaving him wordless as his mouth slipped open. She smiled slyly, letting her nose brush against his jawline lightly. She felt his adam’s apple bob nervously, and giggled softly. 

His hands found her waist, gripping her hips tightly, and she hummed.

“Sarah…” He warned. She slid her hand up his chest, pushing at the soft fabric covering his gentle skin. Her hand passed over his shoulder, gliding up his neck and threading through his hair. Behind her back, Jareth’s hands tightened ever so slightly as she tugged on his golden threads. 

“What did you think challenging me would accomplish, Jareth, hmm?” she hummed against his throat, massaging his scalp lightly. She heard a low purr rumbled deep in his chest, and grinned. She liked that she had this power over him. She liked being able to twist his thoughts and turn his mind just like he did with her. “What did you think I would do? Say those magic words I know you love? Beg you for the spoon back?” She brushed her lips lightly against his pulse, and he jolted under her touch, tensing and straightening. “Oh, I bet you would want me to beg. On my knees, saying those words you love.”

He let out a strangled gasp as her teeth scraped against his neck. And before he could blink, she was wrenching the spoon from his grasp, backing away, leaving him alone and unfulfilled and wanting more.

She walked over to the sink, tossing the spoon into the basin and grabbing another wooden spoon from a drawer.

“You didn’t even need that spoon back…” Jareth said in surprise and awe.

“Nope. Wouldn’t want to use one that’s been on the floor anyways. Not after all those goblins were crawling over it.” She stirred the tea again, tapping the spoon on the side of the pot and grabbing two cups from a cupboard. She filled them with the flowery scented drink and placed them on her small dining table. He took the seat across from her.

“So, Jareth.” Sarah started as he sipped the tea, making a pleasant sound as he tasted it. “Why have you been sending goblins to torment me for _ ten freaking years _ ?”

Jareth smiled. “I haven’t.”   


“Thanks. Explain more please?”

“There are aspects of my kingdom I cannot control. One of those are the goblins during the seventh new moon. They tend to run rampant and ignore my wishes.”

“I thought your wishes had no effect?”   


“They don’t. But fear will keep any man or goblin in line. But on certain nights… they lose this fear. And they came for you…” Jareth frowned into his cup. Sarah sighed.

“I thought you were all powerful, Jareth. You’re the Goblin King. So how do you not have power over your own subjects? They’re of your kind.”

“They aren’t, Sarah. I was a man once. A very, very long time ago. But no longer. If anything, I’ve become more goblin than man.”

Sarah was quiet for a second. “I don’t think so.”   


“Sarah, they Labyrinth changes people. Spend too much time with the goblins, and you become one.”

“You’re not a goblin.”   


Jareth took a long sip of tea. “No, but I’m not a man either.”

Sarah didn’t answer. Instead, she pulled out her phone and began to type on it.

“I never realized a cellular device could be more interesting than a real life conversation.”   


“Jareth, nothing could be more fascinating than spending my time with you,” Sarah said with a monotone voice, not looking up from her phone. Jareth chuckled.

“Ugh, there’s too much Lord of the Rings influence nowadays… hmmm… aha!” Sarah shoved her phone forward, sticking it directly in Jareth’s face. He recoiled and let his eyes focus.

“Before Tolkien wrote his books, people used to speculate that a man who spent too much time with mythical creatures became them partially. And one who spent too much time with goblins became…”   


“Fae.” Jareth finished, tilting his head in consideration. Yes, he had heard people call him that before. The fae who is too human, too demonic, too goblin to be a real fae. 

“You’re definitely a fae,” Sarah decided. Jareth lifted a brow.

“What makes you so sure?”   


“The mind abilities, the wish thing, the magic, the—” Sarah stopped herself before she said physique, but by Jareth’s smirk she knew her cheeks were red and he knew exactly what she was going to say next.

“The hair,” she corrected, sipping more tea to recenter herself. 

“The hair?” Jareth asked, fingering his golden locks.

“The hair.” Sarah conceded, placing her cup down with a  _ click _ . 

“What about my hair makes you think fae?”   


“It’s very woodland-esque. Makes me think of those stories I read when I was young.”   


“Interesting. Which story was your favorite?”

Sarah’s face stilled and she looked at his grin, unimpressed. “Certainly not yours.”   


Jareth looked offended. “Why is that?”

“You stole my brother!”   


“You asked me to!”

“Yeah, I was fifteen and angsty!”

“Even if you were kidding, I had to follow by the rules. I couldn’t leave him even after you wished. Those are the rules. And rules cannot be swayed by a pretty girl with a knack for seducing immortal kings.” Jareth shrugged. 

Sarah sipped her tea, feeling salty and a little proud that he so openly admitted she had seduced him.

It was an interesting thought, seducing the Goblin King. Jareth had been visiting her dreams at least once a month since she had turned twenty. In those dreams, they had conversations about the weather, how the world above had changed, about her job, about his job, the goblins, his life, her life, their loneliness. Jareth had done everything from having tea with her to putting her through the Labyrinth once again to… other stuff. She wondered which one their tea would end as.

“Fine. Then what about those letters?” Sarah inquired. Jareth froze, tea halfway to his lips.

“They’re nothing.”

“Sure. Do you really expect me to believe they’re for  _ another _ Sarah?”

“They are.”

“It’s spelled the same.”

“Very observant,” Jareth commented, swirling his tea around his cup. She scowled.

“What are they about?” Sarah asked casually. Jareth froze again, redirecting his attention to anywhere else but her green, green eyes.

“They were about nosy young women who don’t know how to mind their own business,” Jareth said, going to take another sip.

Sarah slipped her barefoot up his leg and he choked on his tea.

“What was that, Jareth? Nosy girls? Something about…” her foot slipped inside his thigh and he gasped, hands gripping the edges of the table, “Minding my own business?” She hummed. “I can’t tell if you’d like that or not.” 

“Sarah…” he said through grit teeth, eyes squeezing close. 

“Mm?” she mused, glancing up and down his shaking frame. “Was that a  _ yes _ or  _ no _ ?”

He took a deep breath, chest heaving as he attempted to control himself. Why was it that when it came to Sarah all his common sense and rational thought went out the window? The only thing he could think of was pinning her down and ripping off her flowery dress for better access to what was beneath. He clenched his teeth and pinned his thighs together, her foot getting clamped between them and eliciting a squeal from her perfect lips.

“Jareth?” Sarah squeaked.

“Don’t make me ruin your pretty little dress, Precious,” Jareth said, voice throaty and husky and a little bit strangled. Sarah turned a bright red, hands gripping the armrests of her chairs so hard she expected them to crack under her fingers. She ripped her foot from his legs and tucked them beneath her chair, taking a large gulp of tea to help her dry mouth.

Jareth seemed to recover quickly, face resuming it’s normal smirk and body stilling into his casual grace and elegance. Sarah slammed her tea back onto the table. 

She either needed answers or needed him to leave before she lost control of herself and this went to a place they wouldn’t recover from. 

“Can I see the letters?” Sarah asked. Jareth frowned.    


“No.”   


“Why not?”   


“They’re personal.”   


“Then why were they in my apartment?”   


“Accident. Didn’t mean to send them to you.”   


“What did you mean to do with them?”

“Burn them, precious. Burn them.”

“What? Why would you do that?”

“They were a distraction I could no longer afford,” Jareth sipped his tea. “And I had duties to attend to in that kingdom. The letters took up precious time. Burning something is a fantastic way to rid one’s mind of the distraction. You should try it some time.”

“I don’t think you’d appreciate being put on a funeral pyre,” she muttered into her cup, but not to quietly that Jareth did not hear. He raised his eyebrows and set his cup down lightly. 

“I don’t believe I would, no.”

Sarah coughed on her drink putting it own and wiping her mouth. “Uh, yeah. I don’t think anyone would.”

They fell into an uncomfortable silence. Jareth fixed that by setting his cup down and disappearing. Sarah was instantly on alert.

“Jareth?” she called, turning around in her chair and looking behind her. She didn’t see him. She frowned. He wouldn’t go back to the labyrinth that suddenly, would he? Normally he would do something like sneak up on her and make her speechless with a well placed touch— 

A hand slid down her stomach, and she yelped, leaping out of her chair. A chuckle rang through her apartment. 

“Jareth!” she called, spinning in a circle. She couldn’t see him. She could hear him. She could feel his presence. She could taste the strawberries from his tea— 

_ Was he kissing her? _

It was hard to tell. She had the same tea he did. And if he was, his touch was so featherlight, she wouldn’t have been able to tell. She closed her eyes. 

She heard his chuckles from a room to her left. She heard his footsteps to her right. She felt his presence behind her, in front of her. She tastes strawberries. She felt his lips on hers.

Two hands slid down her waist and gripped her hips. She reached forward, feeling for anything, but there was nothing there. Growling, she grabbed again. This time, she felt a slip of silky fabric through her fingers before she wrenched away from his touch and opened her eyes. She was alone, save the hearty chuckle ringing in her ears.    


“If you’re going to kiss me you better do it properly, Jareth!

A chuckle behind her, but this time it didn’t sound echoey and distant. It was solid, coming from a man’s chest. She turned slowly, looking up to see Jareth’s face grinning down at her.    


“As the lady wishes,” he purred, before leaning down and capturing his lips on hers.

His lips were soft, she noted in the back part of her mind. Soft and loving, as he caressed her cheek with one hand, the other resting on her hip. She tangled her hands into his hair, and he released a low groan deep in his throat. Her tongue prodded at his lips, and he opened his mouth, allowing her to explore his mouth with lazy grace, as he deepened the kiss. 

Sarah knew how this was going to end.

* * *

Jareth had departed hours ago, kissing her one last time and teleporting away. Sarah acted inconspicuous for the rest of the day: tidying up her room, remaking her bed, cleaning the goblin blood and pepper spray off her walls, and pretended to go to sleep. When she felt Jareth’s presence leave her room, she ripped open her nightstand drawer and produced six untouched letters.

One thing about Jareth is that he was no longer observant after being worn out. 

Another thing was that his hands were  _ very _ sensitive when he wasn’t wearing gloves.

She reopened the flap of the first letter, and began to read.

 

She resealed the last letter, and let her hands fall to her bed.

She let out a heavy breath of air. Wow. Okay. 

Sarah ran the information over in her head again. The romantic, the scared, the hopeful, the defeated. All things she never expected to see from Jareth. He was a mystery, even after this evening.

_ I believe you could save the King from the dragon. _

She checked her schedule. The next three days were free from work, since she had Monday off from work. She smiled, and laid back down in her bed.

In the morning, she would begin her quest to save her King.

**Author's Note:**

> This is a Christmas present for my girl Ghostee! Love you! I really hope you like it, I tried to channel my inner you while writing this lol.  
> I hope Tee likes it and I hope everyone likes it! To be fair, I've only seen this movie once, so please don't kill me for having a fact wrong or something. Also I took some influence from the book Wintersong, which is absolutely wonderful to read and I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoyed this movie.  
> Thank you for reading and please review!


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